General introduction to Thua Thien Hue province
I. Formation history
- Under Nguyen dynasty, Thua Thien Hue is known as Thua Thien. It was not until French colonization period, Thua Thien Hue was named as today. In 1976, Binh Tri Thien province was founded by joining Thua Thien province, Quang Binh province and Quang Tri province.
- Pursuant to Decision passed at the 5th session of National Assembly tenure VIII of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on June 30, 1989, Binh Tri Thien province were divided into three previous separated provinces. Thua Thien was renamed Thua Thien Hue
II. Geographical position and natural features
1. Coordinates
Located in Central Coast region of Vietnam, Thua Thien Hue province consists of mainland and territorial sea of East Sea continental shelf. Below is the coordinates of its mainland
- North pole: 160 44'30'' N and 107023'48'' E Giap Tay hamlet, Dien Huong commune, Phong Dien district.
- South pole: 15059'30'' N and 1070 41'52'' E, Thuong Nhat commune, Nam Dong district.
- West pole: 160 22'45'' N and 107 0 00'56'' E, Paré, Hong Thuy commune, A Luoi district.
- East pole: 16013'18'' N and 108 012'57'' E, the East of Son Cha island, Lang Co townlet, Phu Loc district.
2. Border and area
Thua Thien Hue shares border with Quang Tri province, Quang Nam province, Da Nang city, Lao People's Democracy Republic (81km long border with Laos) and the East Sea.
- In the North, from East to West, Thua Thien Hue has 111.671 long shared border with Hai Lang, Dakrong, Huong Hoa district, Quang Tri province.
- In the South, the province shares 56,66km long shared border with Hien district, Quang Nam province and 55, 82km long border with Hoa Vang district, Da Nang city.
- The West, provincial border (national border also) stretches from the North (the border of Thua Thien Hue, Quang Tri and Lao People's Democracy Republic) to the South (the border of Thua Thien Hue province, Quang Nam province and Lao People's Democracy Republic) is 87,97km in length.
- The East, Thua Thien Hue borders the East Sea. The total has 120km coastline.
- Continent area, ThuaThien Hue cover the area of 5025,30 km2 in West North - East South. The
- Internal waters area: 12 sea miles
- Exclusive economic zone is up to 200 sea mile from the baseline.
- An island called Son Cha is located in East sea continental shelf. It is about 600m from Khem sea gate. Despite its limited size (160 hectares), Son Cha plays an important role in socio-economic development, national defense of entire country in general and Thua Thien Hue in particular.
- Thua Thien Hue is located in important trans-North and South traffic axis, East-West corridor connecting Thailand - Laos and Vietnam through Road 9. Located in Central Vietnam, Thua Thien Hue is about 660km from Hanoi city and 1.080 km from Ho Chi Minh city.
- Thua Thien Hue has 120 km long coastal line. The province is home to Phu Bai airport, Thuan An port, especially Chan May bay which enable the province to construct a deep sea port. 1A high way and trans-Vietnam train ran across province.
3. Climate and weather
Located in tropical monsoon climate zone, Thua Thien Hue has 4 seasons spring, summer, autumn and winter. The average temperature in province is 25. The number of yearly sunny hour is 2000 hours. The best time for traveling is from November to April of the following year.
4. Terrain features
Thua Thien Hue has pretty clear hierarchical structure.
- Mountain terrain stretches from Viet-Laos border to Danang city and accounts for 1/4 area.
- Midland terrain accounts for 1/2 area. Its average height i s less than 500m.
- Local delta is a typical delta which has sand dunes and lagoon. Delta area accounts for about 1,400 km2.
5. Tam Giang lagoon
- Tam Giang - Cau Hai lagoon stretches over 68 km across 04 districts: Phong Dien, Quang Dien, Phu Vang, Phu Loc and Huong Tra town with the area of 22,000 hectares.
- Regards to geographical side, the lagoon systems includes 4 lagoons from North to South i.e. Tam Giang lagoon; Sam lagoon; Ha Trung - Thuy Tu lagoon; Cau Hai lagoon.
- Tam Giang lagoons covers an area of 5.200 hectares from O Lau river to Huong river estuary. It joins sea via Thuan An gate.
- Sam lagoon is much smaller with the total area of 1,620 hectares. Unlike Tam Giang lagoon, Sam lagoon is not connected with the sea.
- Ha Trung-Thuy Tu lagoon is long and narrow with the area of 3,600 hectares. Similar to Sam lagoon, it is not connected with the East Sea.
- Cau Hai is the largest lagoon which covering the area of 11.200 hectares. Tu Hien gate connects Cau Hai lagoon and the East Sea.
Huong river
6. River system
The total length of river, streams and dug river is 1.055km. Total basin area is up to 4.195km2. River density is about 0,3-1km/km2, and up to 1.5-2.5 km/km2 in some areas.
Rivers located in Thua Thien Hue province from the North to the South are
- O Lau river
- Huong river
- Nong river
- Truoi river
- Cau Hai river
- Bu Lu river
Of all, Huong river is the longest. It has two main sources which are from Truong Son range.
Its main branch - Ta Trach branch is 67km long. It is from Truong Son range. Ta Trach branch flows in North West direction across Nam Dong town and meets Huu Trach branch at Bang Lang intersection (about 3km to the North).
Being the sub branch, Huu Trach is about 60 km long. It runs across 14 dangerous waterfalls and Tuan ferry. Huong river is about 33 km long from Bang Lang intersection to Thuan An port. In this area, it runs pretty slow (as river water level is nearly the same with sea level).
Beside natural rivers, there are also many mandmade rivers around Hue city such as
In addition to natural rivers, Hue city also has many dug rivers such as
- An Cuu river (also known as Loi Nong) is 27km in length. The river connects Huong river with Cau Hai lagoon in Quan Cong via Dai Giang river.
- Dong Ba river is a dug river from Gia Hoi bridge to Bao Vinh which is 3km in length
- Ke Van river is 5,5km in length. It connects Huong river with Bach Yen river and An Hoa river; surrounds Hue citadel and joins Huong river in Bao Vinh.
Coastal delta
III. Mineral resources
Thua Thien Hue province is home to 120 mines of 25 minerals, underground water resources which distribute thoroughly in province. Of all, non-metallic minerals and construction materials not only have high economic value, but also account for a considerable proportion.
- Local main kind of energy mineral is peat. Peat mines located in Phong Chuong commune (Phong Dien district) come in large reserve which is up to 5 million as estimated.
- Metallic mineral group include iron, titanium, lead, zinc, gold, tin, etc.
- Non-metallic minerals and construction materials including pyrite, phosphorite, kaolin, clay, granite, gabbro, limestone, gravels and construction sand are the most potential resources in Thua Thien Hue province.
- Water resources including both fresh water and hot mineral water are widely distributed across the province. The total underground water reserve reached nearly 9.200m3/day according to C1 research.
- Seven hot springs sources can be used to drink and healthcare distributed in mountainous areas. Of all, the three hot springs are Thanh Tan, My An and A Roang.
IV. The system of cultural institutions and historical relics
1. Museum: 05
a) Public
- History and Revolution Museum, Ho Chi Minh Museum in Thua Thien Hue province (Department of Culture, Information and Tourism);
- Hue Royal Antiques Museum (Hue Monuments Complex)
- Central Coastal Natural Museum (Department of Science and Technology);
- Hue Culture Museum (under the management of the People's Committee of Hue city).
b) Private
- Nguyen dynasty museum (86 Mai Thuc Loan - Hue city of researcher Tran Dinh Son).
2. Gallery: 03
- Diem Phung Thi Art Gallery
- Le Ba Dang Art Gallery (Department of Culture, Information and Tourism);
- Thuy Thanh Farming tools gallery (HuongThuy).
3. Library
a) Provincial General library, libraries in 8 districts and towns.
b) Libraries at schools
4. Culture house
a) Thua Thien Hue Culture and Information Center
b) Culture and Information Centers at 9 districts, towns and city.
5. Theater: 2
Hue Royal Traditional Art Theater (Hue Monuments Conservation Center), Hue Singing and Art Theater (Department of Culture, Information and Tourism).
6. Relic
a) World cultural heritages: Hue Monuments Complex (18 relics)
b) Special national relics: Hue Monuments Complex, relic system of Truong Son road - Ho Chi Minh road (cross Thua Thien Hue province) (02)
c) Relics ranked as nation and province level: 141 relics including 86 national relics, 55 provincial relics. Hue Monuments Complex was ranked as special national relic.
7. Intangible cultural heritage: Hue royal court music
V. Administrative units (According to yearly statistic in 2007)
Thua Thien Hue has 9 affiliated administrative units including Hue city, HuongThuy town, Huong Tra town and 6 districts (Phong Dien, Quang Dien, PhuVang, Phu Loc, A Luoi, Nam Dong).
1. Hue city
- Area: 70,67 km2
- Population: 356,159 people
- Density: 5.040 people/km
Geographical position:
+ borders Huong Thuy town to the South
+ borders Huong Tra town to the West
+ borders Huong Tra town and Phu Vang district to the North
- Number of administrative units: 27 districts.
2. Phong Dien district
- Area: 948,23 km2
- Population: 92.748 people
- Density: 98 people/km2
- Geographical position:
+ borders Quang Dien district to the East
+ borders Huong Tra town to the Eas South
+ borders the East Se to the East North
+ borders Quang Tri province to the West North
+ borders A Luoi district to the South
- 15 communes and 01 townlet.
3. Quang Dien district
- Area: 163,05 km2
- Population: 82,197
- Density: 504 people/km2
- Geographical position: Quang Dien district is located to the North of Thua Thien Hue province, about 15km from Hue city.
+ Borders with Huong Tra town to the East
+ Borders with Phong Dien district to the West
+ Borders with the East Sea to the Northeast
- Number of administrative unit: 10 communes and 01 townlet
4. Huong Tra town
- Area: 517,10 km2
- Population: 116,328 people
- Density: 225 people/km2
- Geographical position:
+ borders Hue city and Huong Thuy town to the East
+ borders Phong Dien district to the West
+ borders A Luoi district to the South
+ borders Quang Dien district and Phu Vang district to the North
- Number of administrative unit: 7 districts, 9 communes which are divided 3 regions:
+ Mountainous area and 5 communes: Hong Tien, Binh Dien, Binh Thanh, Huong Binh and HuongTho.
+ Delta and semi-montagneuse area has 8 communes and districts. Huong Ho, Huong Chu, Huong An, Huong Van, Huong Toan, Huong Vinh and Tu Ha townlet.
+ Lagoon and coastal region has 2 communes: Huong Phong and Hai Duong
5. Huong Thuy town
- Area: 454,66 km2
- Population: 104.474 people
- Density: 230 people/km2
- Geographical position:
+ borders Phu Loc district to the East
+ borders Huong Tra town and A Luoi to the West
+ borders Nam Dong district to the South
+ borders Hue city and Phu Vang district
- Number of administrative unit: 05 districts and 07 communes
6. Phu Vang district
- Area: 278,24 km2
- Population: 184.927 people
- Density: 665 people/km2
- Geographical position:
+ borders the East Sea to the East
+ borders the Hue City and Huong Thuy town to the West
+ borders Phu Loc to the South
+ borders Huong Thuy town to North
- Number of administrative unit: 19 communes and 01 townlet.
7. Phu Loc district
- Area: 720,36 km2
- Population: 140,530 people
- Density: 195 people/km2
- Geographical position:
+ borders the East Sea to the East
+ borders Nam Dong district to the West
+ borders Da Nang city to the South
+ borders Huong Thuy town, Phu Vang district to thE North
- Number of administrative unit: 16 communes and 02 townlets
8. A Luoi district
- Area: 1.225,21 km2
- Population: 49.823 people
- Density: 41 people/km2
- Geographical position:
+ borders Huong Thuy town, Huong Tra town and Nam Dong district (ThuaThien Hue).
+ borders Salavan and Sekong province (Lao People's Democratic Republic)
+ borders with Tay Giang district (Quang Nam province)
+ borders with Phong Dien district (Thua Thien Hue province) and Dakrong province (Quang Tri province)
- Number of administrative unit: 01 townlet and 20 communes
9. Nam Dong district
- Area: 647,78 km2
- Population: 27.124
- 42 people/km2
- Geographical position:
+ borders Phu Loc district to the East
+ borders Luoi district to the West
+ borders Quang Nam province and Da Nang city to the south
+ borders Huong Thuy town to the North
- Number of administrative unit: 10 communes and 01 townlet
The 2562 Lord Buddha's birthday
VI. Ethnic groups and religion
1. Ethnic groups
Thua Thien Hue province is home to ethnic minority groups
- Bru-Van Kieu
- Co-tu
- Ta Oi
- Pa Koh
2. Religion
There are four main religions in Thua Thien Hue province, they are
- Buddhism
- Christian
- Protestanism
- Caodaism